Lewis Hamilton admits world title is slipping out of his grasp as McLaren struggles to keep up

By Jonathan McEvoy Last updated at 11:29 PM on 2nd August 2010 Lewis Hamilton, wearing dark shades from departure lounge to baggage collection, was up early to fly from Budapest to London on Monday. Back to tweak McLaren’s car at their factory in Woking? No, the rules don’t allow it, and there’s the rub. ‘If I was to sit here and say I am confident I will win the world championship that would not be right,’ said Hamilton, who is four points off leader Mark Webber, of Red Bull, after his gearbox failed in last Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix. Long road back: Hamilton lost the lead in the drivers’ standings after retiring from the Hungarian Grand Prix ‘But I have to remain optimistic. I am fit enough and I think I have enough in me to win the championship. Whether we will have the package to deliver, I can’t answer. We just have to keep working.’ Yes, McLaren are struggling for pace compared to Red Bull and Ferrari, but there is nothing they can do about it. Not for a fortnight anyway. We are at the beginning of the summer break – the next race, in Belgium, is on August 29 – and the cost-cutting measures introduced last year impose a mandatory two-week factory shutdown on all teams. Each team can choose to take it when they wish. McLaren’s started as yesterday ticked into life. That means they cannot conjure up new components – other than in their doodlings on the beach – or check them out until the freeze ends. Hard yards: The 2008 world champion is desperate for a faster car this season That would appear to advantage Red Bull and Ferrari, who have emerged in that order as the fastest cars on the track. That is in part due to the flexible front wings they are deploying. Flexible body work is outlawed, but the FIA have yet to find a test to rumble the innovative designs. And before anyone cries foul, pushing the laws with engineering ingenuity is a key ingredient of Formula One’s arms race. Red Bull’s Australian driver Webber said as much: ‘Our guys have broken their balls to design a car in the spirit of the regulations and every time we are tested by the FIA, we pass. ‘So when people don’t like what they see on the stopwatch they have to justify…

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Posted by admin 3 August 2010

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